eat make read

When I was stuck in airports a few weeks ago, I ended up buying more than my share of magazines. One of them, O magazine, had a whole article about blueberries and tasty recipes to make with them. One them was this recipe for blueberry focaccia and it looked absolutely amazing. I studied in Italy when I was in college and the one thing, hands down, that I couldn’t get enough of was foccacia bread, so it has a soft spot in my heart. I ripped that puppy out and put it in my purse to make sure I didn’t lose it.

This weekend I picked up a pint of blueberries at the market eager to get started on my unconventional focaccia recipe. It’s really simple, it just takes time because you have to wait for the dough to rise twice, once in the bowl and once layed out on a baking sheet. After the second rising, you sprinkle the blueberries over the dough along with some brown sugar (yum!). Soon after placing the baking sheet in the oven, you start to smell pure goodness and it’s clear your tastebuds are going to have a party.

When I pulled the bread out of the oven it was a beautiful sight. The berries had turned a deep purple and the bread a lovely golden color. I let it cool as Aaron and I took in the cinnamony smell, eager to get a taste of it. I cut us both a piece and when we bit into it, both our eyes lit up. The bread is soft and threaded with hints of cinnamon and brown sugar while the blueberries add a juicy contrast to the bread. The bread wasn’t exactly what I would call focaccia, but it was most certainly something that I won’t be forgetting for a while. I think it will be making a regular appearance in my breakfast rounds. Try it out, you won’t be dissappointed!

Blueberry Focaccia
from O magazine

I cut my recipe in half and it worked out well.

1 package (1/4 ounce) active dry yeast
2 1/4 cups warm water
6 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup light brown sugar
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 large egg
6 Tbsp. unsalted butter, room temperature
Vegetable oil, for greasing
2 pints (5 to 6 cups) blueberries
1
In a small bowl, mix yeast and water; set aside until foamy, about 5 minutes. In a large bowl, combine flour, 1/2 cup brown sugar, salt, and cinnamon. Stir egg into yeast; pour into flour mixture and mix on low speed. Add butter, and mix until combined. Knead dough until smooth and pliable but still relatively wet, about 5 minutes on a stand mixer.
2
Grease a large bowl and 2 baking sheets with oil; set baking sheets aside. Scrape dough into bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
3
Preheat oven to 400°. Halve dough, and place 1 piece on each baking sheet. Stretch out slightly, until dough forms a 1-inch-thick oval; cover with greased plastic wrap. Let rise again about 1 hour.
4
With greased fingers, dimple surface of each loaf; sprinkle with 1 pint berries and 1/4 cup brown sugar each. Bake until golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes, rotating once. Slice and serve warm.

When I saw this recipe in the Times this week, I thought it sounded like a perfect reprieve from the hot, muggy weather we’ve been having. So I got out my blender and got moving. The result is a perfect blend of lime and coconut. It’s super simple and  really lovely to look at. It’s a great way to celebrate the end of hot day… although next time I think I’ll be adding a splash (or two) of tequila or rum to make it super jazzy.

Cheers! Have a great weekend!

If you’re in the NYC are this weekend, it’s going to be a great weekend for delicious food. Sunday is both the Unfancy Food Show in Williamsburg and the New Amsterdam Market at South Street Seaport. Both will have delicious artisanal food and beverage vendors. Yummm, I can’t wait!

As promised, I picked up some popsicle molds when I was at home last weekend. Unfortunately I didn’t have any fruit on hand when I got the urge to make some homemade popsicles, so I looked around and what do you know, I had some ginger. I whipped up a batch of my homemade ginger ale, mixed it with a little club soda and set my popsicle mold in the freezer to turn into something great.

The result was spicy and icy at the same time and super delicious. Next up, I think I have to try a paleta recipe.

I stayed with my best friend’s parents when I went home last weekend and I was thrilled to hear that they’d started a pretty big garden in their backyard. I had just finished Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, so I was dying to get some dirt on my hands and see some fresh vegetables. They’d planted everything from tomatoes to zucchini to potatoes plus way, way more. I took a little tour Saturday morning and was able to snap a few pictures, because it was just too lovely not to.

I think I need a weekend country house.

I just finished reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A year of Food Life by Barbara Kingslover. I can’t begin to tell you how dreamy this book was, it’s definitely my favorite book of the year. In case you’re not familiar with it, the author and her family decide to make a move from Arizona to their summer farm house in Virginia to live off the land for one year. If they don’t grow it themselves, it must come from a local source. The book is written chronologically and you learn about the work it takes to prepare a garden and animals to maintaining it and preparing for the winter months. There are interesting facts interspersed that are written by Kingslover’s husband Steven L. Hopp and recipes written by her daughter Camille Kingslover.

I learned a lot about what it takes to grow your own food and how it feels to have that connection to the things you put in your body. While I don’t see being able to have my own garden for awhile, it’s certainly strenghtened my resolve to visit the farmer’s market often and support local growers. I think I might even try my hand at a tomato plant next year… we’ll see.

When Aaron and I went to dinner at Mas a while ago, he had duck with rhubarb and it was really, really good. That got us to thinking what else could we do with rhubarb and somehow we ended up with a vision of rhubarb, ricotta and chicken all in a puff pastry.

With that in mind, I made a strawberry rhubarb compote and broiled some chicken thighs a day or so before I was planning on making this concoction, just so I wasn’t overwhelmed. I cut some some store bought puff pastry into triangles and started assembling my turnovers. First I laid down the compote, then a few pieces of chicken and topped it off with ricotta. I folded the pastry over and let them baked for 20 minutes.

The aroma that filled the apartment was totally enticing. Once they were golden and puffed up, I let them cool for a few minutes before trying one out. I have to say, you can’t really go wrong with puff pastry. It’s so easy and enhances anything you put in it. I was really happy with the way these turnovers tasted. The fruit, chicken and cheese melded together nicely to create a nice subtle flavor. I think when I reheat some of them I may make a sauce to drizzle on top or add a little pepper, just for a little extra zip. I’ll definitely be making these again though.

rhubarb, ricotta & chicken turnover
makes 8

1/2 pint strawberry rhubarb compote, like this one
1 container ricotta cheese
4 chicken thighs, broiled and shredded
1 sheet puff pastry
1 egg white

Preheat oven to 375

1
Roll out puff pastry and cut into 8 triangles. Brush edges of puff pastry with egg white.
2
Place a teaspoon of rhubarb compote on half the triangle, keeping about a 1/4 inch from the edge. Next lay a few piece of chicken and top it off with a teaspoon of cheese.
3
Carefully fold over the puff pastry, stretching it a little if you need to. Pinch the edges and seal with a fork.
4
Brush the top of the pastries with the egg white wash.
5
Bake at 375 for 20 minutes.
6
Let cool and then eat up! Yum!

Ahhhh, it’s Monday again. I had a whirlwind tour of the midwest this past weekend and I’m a little tuckered out. Besides attending a bachelorette party, I was able to visit my hometown for the first time in about five years. I used to dread going, but as I’ve grown and my tastes have changed, I find it exciting. In the few short hours I was there I visited the new farmers market and just couldn’t pass up those cherries. Are they not the most beautiful cherries ever? And they tasted as good as they look. I also hit up a few antique malls and garage sales and found lots of treasures, but only came home home with a little vintage mug. I saw this vintage Schick razor at one of the garage sales, and while I didn’t buy it, I couldn’t resist photographing that awesome typography.

This week’s happy hour really packed a punch. I found a recipe for a Lemon Basil Cocktail and thought it would do the trick for my weekly drink experiment. However, now that I’m rereading the recipe I realize that there’s a reason the drink I made was so strong… I forgot the club soda. Oh well, it was still pretty tasty, it just left us all a little more tipsy than we expected. I really like the combination of herbs and fruit, so this was a nice change from the regular old mojito.

I’m off to spend the weekend in Michigan/Indiana/Chicago. Hope you enjoy your weekend! Cheers!

The warm weather seems to be bringing thoughts of popsicles to more than just me. Earlier this week thekitchn posted this yummy sounding recipe for strawberry yogurt popsicles. And as if that wasn’t enough to make me want to run out and buy some popsicle molds, the Times had a great article on “paletas” or mexican popsicles. Here’s an excerpt from one recipe “…berries, puréed and mixed with lime, a touch of chili, and, again, some milk and sugar”. Does that not make you drool?

Ok, I’m writing it here so I have to do it because I think I need to try one of these recipes.. I will buy/order popsicle molds this weekend! I’ll let you know how it goes.